Wakulla County, FL - November 8, 2012 - The Wakulla County Sheriff’s Office and five federal and international law enforcement organizations combined efforts to bring a 44-year-old registered sexual offender back to Wakulla County, according to Sheriff Donnie Crum.

James William Alday, formerly of Crawfordville, was captured in Cambodia in October and through the efforts of the Cambodian Police, the Federal Bureau of Investigation attaché at the U.S. Embassy in Cambodia, the U.S. Department of State, U.S. Customs and Border Patrol and six divisions of the United States Marshal Service, Alday was brought back to the U.S. to face a felony charge of failing to register as a sex offender in Wakulla County.

Cambodian authorities took Alday into custody after discovering that he was a convicted sex offender who had been teaching at a school for children. He was taken into custody by the Cambodian Police for being in the Southeast Asian country illegally.

The Cambodian government began deportation proceedings on Nov. 5 and Alday was placed on a flight back to the United States. Alday boarded his flight to the U.S. in Phnom Penh with a stop-over in Seoul, Korea where Korean authorities made sure Alday was on a flight to Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport in Georgia.

Once Alday arrived in Atlanta he was intercepted and taken into custody by the U.S. Marshal Service’s Sex Offender Investigative Coordinator along with members of the U.S. Marshal Service’s Southeast Regional Fugitive Task Force and U.S. Customs and Border Patrol.

Alday absconded from sexual offender registration in January 2007. His last known address was on Leslie Circle in Crawfordville. According to Florida Statute, if a sexual offender intends to establish a residence in another jurisdiction, they shall report to the sheriff of the county of current residence within 48 hours before the date they intend to leave the jurisdiction. The sexual offender must also give the new address of the intended residence.

Alday was arrested in May 2005 for exposing himself to a 69-year-old Crawfordville female. At that time he was charged with abuse of the elderly without great harm. He was originally arrested in Leon County in 1994 for a sexual assault and battery against a child under age 12.

Alday was transported from the airport to the Clayton County Jail in Jonesboro, Ga. where he is being held after waiving extradition back to Florida. Wakulla County Sheriff’s Office detectives are arranging to meet Alday in Jonesboro to transport him back to Wakulla County to face his felony charge in the next few days.

“There was a great deal of work and coordination required to bring Mr. Alday back to the United States,” said Wakulla Sheriff Donnie Crum. “There was great coordination between my office and all of the federal and international agencies who helped make this happen. I am very pleased that all of the agencies were able to work so well together to bring this investigation to a successful conclusion. Detective Rob Giddens coordinated the effort on behalf of the Wakulla Sheriff’s Office.”

Wakulla County Sheriff's Office Release

Wakulla County, FL - October 8, 2012 - A sexual offender who has been wanted by law enforcement for nearly six years, and was formerly registered in Wakulla County, was captured in Cambodia with the help of the Cambodian government, according to Wakulla County Sheriff Donnie Crum.

James William Alday, 44, formerly of Crawfordville, is being detained at the Cambodian Consulate pending his return to the United States. The WCSO was contacted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) about the case on Monday, Oct. 8.

Alday’s Visa was suspended by the Southeast Asian government when it discovered that Alday absconded as a sexual offender in January 2007. Alday was required to register his place of residence within Wakulla County or any other location and had failed to do so when he left the country.

FBI officials reported that Alday was living in Vietnam and working as a teacher. Alday is scheduled to be flown back to the United States within a week where he will be picked up by WCSO officials in Atlanta.

Florida Statute requires a sexual offender who intends to establish a residence in another jurisdiction to report to the sheriff of the county within 48 hours before the date he intends to leave the jurisdiction. The sexual offender must give the new address of the intended residence and Alday failed to do so. He was originally arrested in Leon County in 1994 for a sexual battery on a child under age 12.

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